People have been using toothbrushes for a very long time now. However, most people still don’t realize how important it is to use a toothbrush that suits them best. To some, this is a soft toothbrush, others harder toothbrushes, and so on.
Sure, you could just use any toothbrush, and maybe save a few bucks, but in the long run, you’re doing yourself a disservice. Using the right toothbrush can save your teeth from cavities and other complications, and is actually more important than your choice of toothpaste.
Read on and find the best manual toothbrush for you.
Best Manual Toothbrush
Comparison Chart
Colgate Extra Clean Toothbrush
Oral-B Pro-Health Clinical Pro-Flex Toothbrush
Dr. Collins Perio Toothbrush
GUM Technique Deep Clean Toothbrush
Nimbus Microfine Toothbrush
Best Manual Toothbrush Reviews
Colgate Extra Clean Toothbrush
Everyone knows about Colgate. In fact, it’s usually the first company that comes to mind when someone mentions teeth, toothbrushes, or toothpaste. They’re still the leaders of this industry, thanks to the quality standards they’ve set. You can expect the same high quality from the Colgate Extra Clean toothbrush.
Product Highlights
This is a soft type of toothbrush, which is considered by many people (including dentists) to be the best kind available. But what exactly is soft in this toothbrush? Well, it isn’t just the grip, although the grip has a nice design, which helps you hold the toothbrush with ease.
You’re fully in control of the movements while you brush, but the bristles are soft as well. The tip of the bristles is designed to reach even your back teeth without losing any effectiveness. This is very important because the back teeth usually deteriorate first as they’re harder to reach.
People who don’t like soft bristles can choose the medium or firm bristle options instead. It’s good to have not only variety in firmness, but also in color. Coloring of toothbrushes is very important. If you don’t live alone, you can easily mix up toothbrushes with your SO or family members.
A far from pleasant experience, to say the least! You can also get a bundle deal, which saves you money. The color options are green, pink, purple, and blue.
Going back to the effectiveness of this toothbrush, the bristles are quality tested, and guaranteed to remove the surface stains on your teeth. Furthermore, this helps with teeth whitening, which is natural and doesn’t damage the teeth themselves.
Artificial whitening is very bad, although such a procedure is usually on offer at most dental practices. If they’re honest, they’ll tell you that this procedure actually damages the surface of your teeth.
The Good
This is an all-around best manual toothbrush for a cheap price. In the past, you’ve probably used Colgate brushes already, so you know whether or not you like them. Still, the Colgate Extra Clean toothbrush is an improved brush with advanced cleaning capabilities. It’s nothing fancy, it’s just very effective.
The Bad
This isn’t exactly a premium toothbrush, but people usually don’t buy golden toothbrushes. If you’re looking for a solid toothbrush, then this brush is a good choice for you. Also, the bristle softness of this toothbrush is highly subjective. Some people find it soft, while others are used to even softer brushes.
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Oral-B Pro-Health Clinical Pro-Flex Toothbrush
Oral-B is known for making the best manual toothbrush. Most of their brushes are great, including the Oral-B Pro-Health Clinical Pro-Flex toothbrush. If you’ve seen any of the Oral-B commercials, you know that their brushes are recommended by dentists from all over the world.
Product Highlights
The Oral-B Pro-Health Clinical Pro-Flex toothbrush comes with flexing sides. This means that the toothbrush is flexible and will adjust to teeth oh any shape and texture. It will also adjust to your gum line, which allows it to clean your teeth much better than a regular manual toothbrush.
Not only is it flexible, but it’s also smooth and gentle as well, so forget about having your gums bleed every time you brush your teeth; forget cheap, ordinary toothbrushes which cause exactly that. By the way, this toothbrush is cheap as well, which means it’s great value for money.
The bristle firmness of this toothbrush is medium, which means that it will suit most users. Oral-B claims that this toothbrush should improve your oral health in a matter of just two weeks. There are two color options, the standard Oral-B blue, and purple.
Speaking of effectiveness, based on a clinical trial, this toothbrush should remove as much as 93% of plaque even from hard-to-reach areas of your teeth (i.e. your back teeth).
Finally, with the purchase of The Oral-B Pro-Health Clinical Pro-Flex, you get two toothbrushes instead of one.
The Good
This toothbrush offers great value for money. After all, Oral-B is recommended by dentists who claim these brushes are the best in the world. The effectiveness of this brush is clinically tested, and offers great results. Finally, it’s also very gentle on your gums, which helps immensely with gum infections and/or bleeding.
The Bad
You have to nitpick to find a flaw in this toothbrush. It’s simply fantastic. Some people might complain about the firmness and the lack of options in that department. However, once again, this is something that is highly subjective.
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Dr. Collins Perio Toothbrush
The Dr. Collins Perio Toothbrush might just be the best manual toothbrush available. Due to its smart design, it stands out in the crowd of identical brushes. This brand of brushes is not yet as famous as some of the others, but it makes up for it with quality.
Product Highlights
The bristles of the Dr. Collins Perio toothbrush are made from slim polyester, which helps them get deeper between the gaps in your teeth. This toothbrush is also more effective in removing all the harmful debris and plaque.
To the joy of many people who prefer this style of brush, the bristles are ultra-soft. This translates to a gentle brush, which feels great on the gums and doesn’t cause any irritation or bleeding. These bristles are not so porous, which makes the cleaning experience even better.
The slim polyester base of the bristles helps them last longer than regular nylon brushes. The filaments of this innovative toothbrush are also different. Tapered, they can go through the spaces between your teeth and remove all the buildup which is hard to reach.
The colors of this brush vary, with a purple, green, and pink version. In addition, with each purchase, you get a pack of three brushes, at an excellent price.
Finally, the head of this toothbrush is ergonomic, and the neck is longer for better reach, even with the back teeth. There’s also a thumb grip below the neck, which allows you to hold this brush firmly, without slipping.
The Good
The Dr. Collins Perio toothbrush might not be the best-known brush in the world, but it’s certainly worth trying out. It offers great value for a reasonable price. You get not two but three brushes in the pack.
This brush is designed for comfort and is very gentle on your teeth and gums. That means that even people with teeth inflammation, bleeding gums, and kids or grownups with braces can use it as well.
The Bad
There’s nothing bad about this toothbrush, except for the fact that some people won’t find it soft or hard enough. Apologies for the repetition, but that feeling varies for each individual.
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GUM Technique Deep Clean Toothbrush
The Gum Technique Deep Clean toothbrush is not the most popular toothbrush there is, but it fits into the best manual toothbrush category. This brush is far from expensive, yet it’s very effective. Test this brush yourself and you’ll notice how clean and healthy your teeth and gums feel.
Product Highlights
This toothbrush was clinically designed for improved performance. It cleans even the back teeth with ease, and removes all plaque. Your mouth will be clean, you’ll get rid of bad breath, and your teeth and gums will stay healthy.
Even the grip of this toothbrush is specifically designed for you to have a better 45-degree angle for cleaning. This angle is recommended by dentists, and this grip works for anyone, for left-handed and right-handed people of all ages.
The bristles also have a unique design which makes them highly effective. The bristle ends are fine, tapered, adjustable, and narrow. This means that they can reach further back into your mouth, and between crevices which are otherwise hard to clean. There’s even a second layer of bristles in the brushes’ center for more efficiency.
This is a soft brush, with a soft head as well, which is gentle on your teeth and gums. The color options for this toothbrush are green, blue, and purple. On top of all that, this toothbrush comes in an economy 3-pack.
The Good
There isn’t much more to be said about the Gum Technique Deep Clean toothbrush. It’s simple, effective, and cost-efficient. This brush gets the job done, cleaning your entire mouth, without ever harming your teeth or gums.
The Bad
There will always be someone saying this brush is too soft. Unfortunately, there are no medium or firm options of this toothbrush. If you prefer that kind of brush, you’ll have to look elsewhere.
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Nimbus Microfine Toothbrush
The Nimbus Microfine Toothbrush might be the best manual toothbrush available. Due to its premium quality and innovative design, this top-rated product provides a maximum user satisfaction rate. The best part is that these brushes aren’t even expensive, like anyone would assume.
Product Highlights
This is an extra-soft toothbrush, which enables maximum control and effectiveness in removing all plaque and debris stuck between your teeth. Due to its softness, it’s also suitable for people with sensitive teeth or receding gums.
Every Nimbus toothbrush has a “no harm” principle. Therefore, you can use them even if your gums are prone to bleeding. Talking about the bristles, they’re dual-layered. The first layer is the extra-fine bristles, with a long taper, and there are shorter fine bristles for additional support.
The handle is designed for comfort, and in combination with the amazing bristles, this brush can reach even the most difficult areas of your mouth. The head of this brush is regular, not too long or short, which fits most users.
There is a 5-pack deal with many color variations (blue, green, pink, yellow, purple). There have been some slight tweaks to the design of this toothbrush. Before, it used to have side grips which are no longer present. Also, there were some minor coloring changes, but nothing too important.
The Good
Anyone who’s used one of the Nimbus Microfine toothbrushes can confirm that this is a quality brush. Remember how Harry Potter wanted the Nimbus broom because it was the best? Well, this toothbrush brand is also among the finest in the world. It doesn’t make sense, but these brushes are not expensive at all.
The Bad
It’s nigh on impossible to find a flaw in this toothbrush. There were no major user complaints, except for rare negatives in relation to how the quality of the brush has receded over the years. But those reports are probably from users who bought a copy of a Nimbus brush instead of the real deal.
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Manual Toothbrush Buyer’s Guide
Sometimes the task of buying a simple thing like a toothbrush isn’t so easy. In the main, due to the high number of different brands and types of brushes available. Read on to find out about the most important qualities of the best manual toothbrush.
Brush Head Shape and Size
Brush head shape and size are often overlooked. Whilst not as important as the bristles, they do play an important role. Dentists say that a brush head should be soft, small and round because then it can reach further and provide more flexibility.
However, there’s no perfect brush head shape and size. The choice is up to you because everyone has their own preferences. Some toothbrush manufacturers are now making replicable brush heads, where you keep the handle and only replace the brush head.
Toothbrush Bristles
Toothbrush bristles are the heart and soul of a toothbrush. They’re the most important feature because they’re the ones cleaning your teeth. Each toothbrush brand has different bristles, and it’s hard to name the single best type of bristle.
The bristles are set on the head of a toothbrush, so a good combination of head and bristles will produce the best results. Generally speaking, you want a soft toothbrush head and bristles. But, of course, not everyone will agree with that. More bristle specifics are to follow.
Bristle Stiffness/Hardness
The bristle firmness, stiffness or hardness are all the same thing. These are important factors so pay attention. There are three styles of bristles in terms of firmness: hard, medium, and soft. This will vary on your personal preference, but here’s some general advice.
Harder bristles are more likely to damage your gums, and cause irritation and even bleeding. If your gums are bleeding each time you brush your teeth, change your toothbrush immediately. Consider getting a softer brush, those usually recommended by dentists.
Bristle Cut, Shape and Pattern
Bristles can also vary in cut, shape, and pattern. Some brushes have uniform bristles, while the bristles of other brushes vary in length. There can even be a crisscross bristle pattern on some brush heads. Varying lengths of bristles seem to be most effective because they have a better reach.
The cut of the bristle refers to the sharper or more rounded bristles. The latter is better because they are less likely to harm you. However, you can’t see this unless you look at it using a microscope.
Handle Design and Construction
Toothbrush handle design and construction can vary a lot. The basic, cheap brushes have flat handles. Handle design can help with reaching even difficult parts while brushing. Therefore, you should take this factor into consideration when choosing a toothbrush.
Quality brushes come with innovative handle design, elongated necks which give you better control. They are also made from softer materials, which aren’t so slippery.
Manual Toothbrush FAQ
How Often Should You Get a New Toothbrush?
A question that surely pops into everyone’s mind: how often should you get a new toothbrush? Finally, here’s the answer. Dentists recommend that you use a toothbrush for three of four months on average, no longer.
This is because the brush head gets worn out, specifically the bristles. After that, your brush will no longer be as effective as it was before. People who put a lot of force into brushing damage brushes even faster.
Basically, you should replace your toothbrush as soon as you notice that it’s worn out, or it doesn’t get the job done anymore.
Finally, there’s also the matter of bacteria living in your mouth. Not to gross you out, but there are over 600 types of bacteria in the human mouth. But relax – that’s normal. You should clean your brush with water after every use to eliminate some of the leftover bacteria on it.
What Type of Bristles Should I Use?
Bristles come in all kinds of shapes and firmness. As mentioned before, it’s mostly up to you to decide on the type of bristle you will use. Some people prefer firmer bristles, although more damaging.
However, they do remove plaque more effectively. If you’re a hard brusher, avoid firm bristles because you’re more prone to make your gums bleed. Use a softer bristle instead and you’ll stop harming yourself.
Most dentists actually recommend softer bristles, both for their effectiveness and safety. Medium type bristles are best for the indecisive. This is the middle ground, and provides a perfect balance between force and softness.
How Often Should I Clean My Toothbrush?
This answer to this question is very simple. You should clean your toothbrush after every use, period. You don’t ever want to brush with a toothbrush that has some debris on it. Not only is it yucky, but it also makes brushing less effective.
Toothbrush hygiene is a priority. After all, you’re brushing your teeth not washing your feet. Don’t use any chemicals to clean your toothbrush. Just use tap water and maybe rub it with your (clean) hands. It’s that simple.
Final Verdict
As you can see, it’s hard to pinpoint a single best manual toothbrush. There are many great toothbrushes out there, especially those featured on this list. Each of these brushes is superb, but it’s up to you to choose the right one.
Your personal preferences are the most important determining factor. Brushes aren’t really expensive, so you can test several of them until you find a perfect match for you, and then stick with it.
Remember to change your toothbrush about every three months. You can even get the same one every time. No one will judge you!
